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Reflection Journal- Danial Haziq (1735000)

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Reflection Journal- Danial Haziq (1735000)

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The 8th Ipoh International was indeed an eye opening experience of the cultures of dancesport elsewhere apart from Singapore. It was my first time heading to an overseas competition and I am grateful towards Singapore Polytechnic for giving me this opportunity.

We had to gather at the coach station in Singapore in the evening to embark on a night trip towards Ipoh. We waiting anxiously, checking if we had all our belongings: passports, bags and our friends. Little did I know the trip would be a long monotonous one. We were placed in a coach with other patrons who were also embarking for Ipoh or the other stations before thefore we had to refrain from misbehaving in any way in due of respect. The first hour we were jovial, readily going past customs, which was crowded as per usual. Passing through Singapore’s and Malaysia’s customs we settled in our recliner seats, trying to take naps between the pitstops, which was then time for us to go use the bathroom or to get a snack, if was pretty uneventful till we headed to the Kinta Riverfront Hotel, our destination and venue of said dancesport competition.

Since we reached at the break of dawn, we were unable to check in and thus the hotel clerk suggested we visit a nearby famous coffeeshop, The New Hollywood. The hotel even insisted on giving us a lift to said destination. The meals were sumptuous, from beef noodles to french toast, our breakfast was rather hearty. Afterwards we still had time to kill before checking in, thus, we decided to visit a nearby mall. We decided to call a Grab to bring us there, the driver was a lady, who introduced us to a popular sightseeing location: Concubine Road. We tried finding it afterwards but to no avail. There were many roads to cross, all without conventional pedestrian crossings. This really made me feel grateful of Singapore’s road safety measures. When we returned to the mall we decide to take on a game of laser tag with one another, it was truly exhilarating. The remainder of the day we decided to get haircuts for the upcomming competition to look mighty dapper. We were prepared for almost anything.

On the competition day itself, we had a great breakfast buffet, to eat like champions as we prepare our gear: costume, makeup and shoes. We were to test the floors (and to obviously scout our competitors). Going in, we were unclear on who were our competitors and those looking around our age, if not younger, were way far from our skill level, really making us feel intimidated. Little did we realise that in Ipoh, or generally Malaysia, dancesport students are enrolled in the early ages of 5-8 years old, therefore they develop great skills when they reach adolescence. In this competition our competitors were nothing but children, I reckon not a single one of them are teenagers yet. This made us a little nervous, the confidence of seeing that they’re just little kids was just a facade to hide the fact that there was pressure for us to win agains little kids, and thank god we did. The victory was not as satisfying, yet a win is still a win on the dance floor and I am grateful. We still left the event with heads held high. During the night event, we managed to experience a smidget of what professional dance is, and trust me, a smidget was all I need. Famous dancesport couple, Koupon and Irina destroyed the dancefloor with their mighty fine choreography and footwork. It really shows the skill gap between me and them, which is EXTREMELY wide by the way. This does motivate me to move up the ranks and do better.

On the last day we are to depart from Ipoh, we got up early to what was supposed to be a 9am trip back to Singapore. However, the bus was delayed till 10:30, which did irritate a few who had to wake up early. The setting was pretty much similar to the trip from Singapore: other passengers, same recliner and same scenery. We played games with one another on the bus, trying to kill time. There was a few pitstops here and there, some for just toilet breaks and some with food. After all those, we managed to reach the Malaysian checkpoint, we had to alight to get our passport checked. As we stepped into the hall, we were in utter shock. Not only was it crowded, people were everywhere till the point we could not decipher which was an actual line in the queue for the right booth. There were line cutters here and there as well. I thought to myself, there should be more proper regulation in such establishments. Anyways, we did got checked and managed to board the bus back to Singapore.

All in all, it was truly an eye opening experience, to see and experience Malaysia’s dancesport culture first hand, to go on this journey with my fellow CCA mates. I would surely want to improve on myself and my skills so I can make an advancement in my dancesport campaign.

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I am very honored to have been able to represent SP in the 8th Ipoh International Dancesport Championships 2019.
It gave me a platform to showcase my talent and also learn various lessons from the international dancers, for example their dancing techniques. After seeing the wide range of professional and dedicated dancers, I personally found myself more motivated to do better and strive for the best.
This event also gave me a chance to bond with my fellow seniors and friends. Throughout the journey in  Ipoh we got closer and got to know each other more. As this was my first international competition I was nervous and I thought I wouldn’t be able to pull it off,however, thanks to my seniors and friends who supported me and gave me the courage to do well in my competition. We also had to look out for each other, which kept us bonded throughout the journey.They even thought me some basic Chinese words, which I felt was really useful for me especially staying in a multiracial country ,Singapore,it helps me to bond with other races more and learn more about their language and culture.
It was my first time in Ipoh and in fact the first time traveling without my parents, I was nervous and afraid that something might go wrong as I’m not familiar with the place,however,the people of Ipoh and their culture proved me wrong,they were in fact very friendly and approachable,which made me change my perspective of them and overcome my fear and start to trust people around me.
The food at Ipoh was something that struck me too, they tasted really good,something different from local Singaporean cuisines and would definitely go back with my family to try them out again.
Last but not least I am very thankful for Ms Hope our teacher in-charge who took care of us throughout the stay in Ipoh. With out her it would have been impossible for all of us.

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Reflection Journal - Elyin Ang Lii Yue (1844063)

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Reflection Journal - Elyin Ang Lii Yue (1844063)

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I am very grateful to SPDS for giving me a golden opportunity to take part in the 8th Ipoh International Dancesport Championships 2019. This was my very first time going overseas to participate in dancesport championship. It was a memorable experience.

It was really challenging for me as me and my partner, Jia Hong was first time partnering up together to participate in competition. But I really appreciate her and she did so well. I felt very happy partnering with her.

This competition had broadens my horizons. I saw many dancers from different countries and they looked confident and powerful. Their dancing skills were so good, even the juvenile dancers. Furthermore, I also joined the night event. It is an eye-opener for me as I could watch those amateur dancers dancing on the floor up close. After watching those competitors dancing, I felt that I still have a lot more to improve.

As a conclusion, this ipoh trip was really a nice and fun trip. It allows me to foster my relationship with my friends. I have learned a lot from this competition and also this wonderful trip.
Thank you !!!

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Reflection Journal- Go Jia Hong (1844274)

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Reflection Journal- Go Jia Hong (1844274)

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It was a meaningful experience for me as I took part in 8th International Dancesport Championship organized on March 2019. This was my first time joining the overseas competitions. Every competitors looked so professional and confidence. For me it was a platform to gain valuable experience from them.
I knew I didn’t dance well in the competition because i forgot the steps of the dance routines, maybe i was too nervous or I am a short term memory people. I couldn’t control myself in being nervous. I kept memorizing the steps of the routines, as a result, i couldn’t relax when i was dancing. So,i felt sorry to my dance partner. She could dance very gracefully and had the potential to win the medals.
As i knew what was the weakness of me i will try to change before it getting worse. Elyin was my dance partner, everytime during training she taught me the steps and techniques. But the results made her disappointed. I knew she was sad but i could do nothing. We joined the Ladies event which included chacha,jive,samba and rumba.
The competition at Ipoh opened my eyes because many competitors over the world came here to compete. It was amazing and it refreshed my mind and sole in enthusiasm on dancing. I hope i will come to Ipoh again to join the competition next year. ;)

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Reflection Journal - Elyin Ang Lii Yue (1844063)

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Reflection Journal - Elyin Ang Lii Yue (1844063)

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Reflection Journal - Wong Xin Pei (1623466)

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Reflection Journal - Wong Xin Pei (1623466)

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I am glad to have a chance to take part in the 8th Ipoh International Dancesport Championship. Throughout this memorable experience, I have learnt the meaning of teamwork and togetherness.

We stuck together as SPDS and got ourselves ready for the competition even weeks before. We learn to take pride in our work, and in this case, it is the performance value put into the dance. As a team, we encourage one another to work harder and aid each other in areas that we are weak at. As fellow dance mates, we build sportsmanship in learning to appreciate competition and admire the hardwork put in by everyone else on the dance floor.

The trip took us out of Singapore and has really broadened my perspective. I had the chance to witness the spectacular performances put up by people from different countries, and appreciate the broad expressions each and everyone brought onto the dance floor.

I believe that this has inspired SPDS dancers to express themselves in their movement with the music, and I am very grateful to SP that has let all my teammates on board this beautiful experience.

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Reflection Journal - Aaron Chang (1624524)

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Reflection Journal - Aaron Chang (1624524)

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Taking part in the 8th Ipoh International Dancesport Championship has been beneficial to me in both my dance and in my personal skills.

Even before the dance competition itself, i took the role as the Group Leader and organised the trip from the method of travel to the location of accommodation. Managing and overseeing an overseas trip will certainly be useful in my future due to the career i have chosen.

As for the competition itself, going against other competitors from other countries have widened my view in terms of dance skills. The opponents from Ipoh were of a higher level in my category and that really challenged me to do better.
Going against them have motivated me to do better in my future competitions and work harder in my dance training.

The evening event in Ipoh allowed me to observe several highly skilled dancers. I was able to compare myself against them and see where i could better improve myself.

Overall, attending this overseas competition has truely been beneficial to me in terms of my dance, and as a person.

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Reflection Journal - Lin Xinyi (1852112)

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Reflection Journal - Lin Xinyi (1852112)

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I am thankful that SPDS gave me a chance to go overseas to participate in this competition. Furthermore, this is my first time competing in the solo category. This experience has made me step out of my comfort zone.

From preparation days to the competition day itself, I saw how my confidence on the dance floor improved & I am really grateful that I am involved in this competition.

I did not achieve any award in this category but I gained a skill which is more important to me - confidence. I hope to be able to compete in this category again as I enjoyed the process.

It was also my first time attending night event, being able to watch amateur dancers live motivated me to always improve myself. I liked the atmosphere in the ballroom - audiences cheering for their favourite couple made me enjoyed the show more as dancers showed their gratitude towards us by smiling genuinely at as. I also hope to be able to attend another night event in the future. thankyou :-)

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Reflection Journal - Victoria Sow (1641695)

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Reflection Journal - Victoria Sow (1641695)

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I am glad that I participated in the 8th Ipoh International Dancesport Championships 2019 in Malaysia. The opportunity to take part in this competition has been nothing but a wonderful experience for me.

Dancing on a competitive level is hard but it’s fun and rewarding. I get to meet all the world-class standard competitors around the world. This competition has broadened my horizons as a dancer and a person and is an invaluable experience. It gave me the opportunity to challenge myself and step out of my comfort zone. The competition was really an eye-opener for me.

In addition, dancing has affected my personality. Building up my confidence. Life lessons that I have learned from dancing is it teaches me not to give up, as you need to work hard and have self-discipline because you need to show up practice on time for every lessons and it requires countless hours of efforts, working on the grace and perfecting my dance technique and movement. Dance has taught me the value of self-discipline as well as leadership and I think all these skills that I have learnt from dancing will definitely serve me well in the future.

So all in all, I felt so blessed to have had this enlightening experience from the competition and the time spent with my friends and with our officers. It was priceless and I will definitely treasure the memories. I am writing this to explain how much dancing in polytechnic shaped me for the better, but more importantly to thank those that were a part of that journey. Thank you!

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Travel Insurance Coverage

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Briefing slides